According to a recent survey from
the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Seventy-two percent
of teens expect to have a new consumer electronics (CE) product
for back to school this year. Parents and teens are expected to
spend $3.1 billion for CE devices this year for back to school.
Calculators and computers topped the list of products that both
teens and parents are likely to buy.

"While calculators have been a staple on back to school shopping
lists for some time now, computers are a relatively recent
'must-have' item," says Steve Koenig, CEA's senior manager of
industry analysis. "As a result, average household spending on
back to school supplies is on the rise. In fact, we forecast
that 67 percent of parents intend to spend between $100 and $500
on back to school items this year."

The study indicates almost 70 percent of teens expect to spend
some of their own money on supplies. CEA estimates teen spending
will top $600 million specifically for consumer electronics. In
addition to calculators and computers, many teens will also
purchase MP3 players.

The creation of sales tax holidays for computers and
computer-related products makes it easier for parents and teens
to adopt these technologies for school-related use. CEA believes
this is an innovative way to help bridge the "digital divide"
that exists in today's classrooms. The states holding sales tax
holidays for computer purchases this summer are: Alabama (August
4-6); Georgia (August 3-6); Missouri (August 4-6); New Mexico
(August 4-6); North Carolina (August 4-6); South Carolina
(August 4-6) and Tennessee (August 4-6). For more information,
visit
www.ce.org/taxholiday.

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